Pedal Switcher - Voodoo Lab

1 Pedal Switcher Owner's Manual Version Please visit our web site at: Copyright 2007 by Voodoo Lab This publication is protected by copyright and all rights are reserved. No part of it may be reproduced or transmitted by any means or in any form without the express prior consent in writing from Voodoo Lab. Voodoo Lab is a trademark of Digital Music Corp. TABLE OF CONTENTS. introduction .. 2 What is Pedal Switcher ? .. 2. Unpacking .. 2. Rear Panel .. 3. Power .. 3. AUDIO CONNECTIONS .. 4. Do I use the Buffer or Passive input? .. 4. About Audio Loops .. 4. Pedal Switcher Loops .. 5. Tuner/Mute Send .. 6. TRS insert .. 7. A/B Switching .. 7. USING Pedal Switcher WITH COMMANDER .. 8. Overview .. 8. Connection .. 8. Selecting Presets .. 8. Programming Presets.

2 9. USING Pedal Switcher WITH GROUND CONTROL PRO .. 9. Overview .. 9. Connection .. 9. Operation .. 10. FAQ .. 11. WARRANTY .. 12. introduction . WHAT IS Pedal Switcher ? Designed to sit on your pedalboard, Pedal Switcher gives you 4 true bypass loops that send your signal only to the pedals you're using. On a traditional pedalboard, even when the effects are off, your signal still goes through numerous tone-trashing buffers, solid-state switches and patch cables. Thanks to Pedal Switcher 's true bypass switching via gold relays sealed in nitrogen, no matter how many pedals you use, your tone will stay pure and dynamic. Not only does Pedal Switcher give your vintage and modern effects true bypass without any modification, it's also completely expandable. When used with Commander foot controller, you can create presets for an unlimited number of Pedal switchers .

3 With one stomp, you can instantly go from screaming vintage fuzz with flange and echo, to clean straight-to-amp tone without ever missing a note. Now you can concentrate on playing instead of tap dancing. Unpacking Your factory carton should contain: 1. This manual 2. Pedal Switcher 3. Power adapter 4. Warranty card Please fill out the enclosed warranty card and return it to Voodoo Lab. By registering, you enable us to send you important information about related products, updates and accessories. 2. REAR PANEL. POWER MADE IN. BUFFER INPUT SEND 1 RETURN 1 SEND 2 RETURN 2 SEND 3 RETURN 3 INSERT SEND 4 RETURN 4 OUTPUT 9 VAC MIDI OUT MIDI IN. Buffer This input is buffered before reaching the 4 audio loops. This allows you to drive long cable runs and multiple devices.

4 Input This input is passive which gives you a direct feed into the 4 audio loops. If you're not sure which input to use, read the section: Do I use the Buffer or Passive input? Send 1/Return 1 Audio Loop 1. Send 2/Return 2 Audio Loop 2. Send 3/Return 3 Audio Loop 3. Insert This TRS insert allows you to patch in a volume Pedal or additional effects between loops 3 and 4. Send 4/Return 4 Audio Loop 4. Output Main audio output. Power 9 VAC input. MIDI Out Echoes MIDI data from MIDI IN. MIDI In Receives MIDI data and provides power to a Commander or Ground Control Pro. Power Use the supplied 9 VAC power adapter to run your Pedal Switcher . This same source also phantom powers the Commander or Ground Control Pro via standard 5-pin MIDI cable. You can also power the Pedal Switcher using either a Voodoo Lab Pedal Power 2 Plus or Pedal Power AC.

5 For more information on this, go to our website at: 3. AUDIO CONNECTIONS. Do I use the Buffer or Passive input? Guitar pickup tone is greatly affected by the input characteristics of the devices you're plugging into. Typical buffers found in most common pedals utilize bipolar transistor components resulting in an unnatural sound. Unlike those, Pedal Switcher 's BUFFER input is carefully matched to those of tube amplifier inputs. By using state-of-the-art ultra low noise FET technology, the BUFFER. in provides tube amp characteristics with the lowest possible noise level. The result is an excep- tionally transparent buffer which optimizes guitar pickup tone quality. The passive INPUT is simply hard-wired from the jack to the gold contact relays. There are many guitar players that love the guitar-cable-amp sound.

6 If that's you, this input is the way to go. When you have all the loops turned off, the tone you get is completely passive. This input is especially helpful because some transistor-based circuits like vintage fuzz, octave, and overdrive pedals will only perform correctly when being driven directly from your pickups. The choice is up to you. If your pedals consist of mostly vintage-based circuits, you'll probably prefer the passive INPUT. But, if you to run a lot of cable, or possibly some post- Pedal Switcher rack effects, you'll probably want to use the buffer. We encourage you to experiment and use your ears to find what works best for you. I f you want to hear and see some suggestions on how to integrate your vintage and modern effects with Pedal Switcher , check out the videos on our website at: ABOUT AUDIO LOOPS.

7 Important: Pedal Switcher audio loops are for instrument and line level signals only. Using them to switch amplifier or speaker outputs will severely damage your Pedal Switcher ! The most important characteristic of an audio Switcher is sonic transparency. Some manufacturers implement loops using either opto-FETs (optical transistors) or LDRs (light dependent resistors), or a combination of the two. Both opto-FETs and LDRs cause sound coloration and measurable distortion. Some even claim their switching to be passive while using opto-FETs (transistors are not passive). LDRs, while technically passive, are not linear and therefore degrade tone quality. Occa- sionally digital crosspoint switches are used for their routing flexibility (you can re-order effects).

8 However, their limited dynamic range results in either reduced headroom, added noise, or both. 4. The only completely transparent way to switch both instrument and line level signals (with no audible distortion) is with relays. Pedal Switcher uses the finest gold contact relays sealed in nitrogen. Pedal Switcher LOOPS. The basic function of a Pedal Switcher loop is to bring your effects in and out of the signal path via true bypass, instant access switches. LOOP ON LOOP OFF LOOP ON LOOP OFF. DELAY CHORUS OD FUZZ. IN OUT IN OUT IN OUT IN OUT. In this example, the Overdrive and Delay pedals are on. But, the Fuzz and Chorus pedals are completely bypassed. 5. TUNER/MUTE SEND. Any one of the 4 audio loops can be used to send your signal to a tuner while muting the rest of your setup.

9 However, by placing the tuner in Loop 1, you're able to send un-effected signal to the tuner. NOTE: The last thing you'd want to do is have your tuner in the last loop. This means that you might end up with chorus or delay on the signal. You'll be trying to tune for days! DIST. CHORUS DELAY. TUNER AMP. IN IN OUT IN OUT IN OUT. POWER MADE IN. BUFFER INPUT SEND 1 RETURN 1 SEND 2 RETURN 2 SEND 3 RETURN 3 INSERT SEND 4 RETURN 4 OUTPUT 9 VAC MIDI OUT MIDI IN. As you can see from the example above, by not returning the signal back into the Pedal Switcher , you've now broken the audio path, thus muting all sound post your tuner. Important: Pedal Switcher audio loops are all hard-wired together in series. This means that if you engage a loop that doesn't have anything plugged into it, you'll break the audio path and no audio will pass!

10 6. TRS INSERT. Using the TRS insert breaks the connection between loops 3 and 4. This allows you to patch in a volume Pedal or additional effects that you don't need Pedal Switcher to control. TRS refers to the type of stereo 1/4-inch plug (Tip, Ring, Sleeve) which then breaks out into mono IN and OUT jacks. This is commonly referred to as an insert point cable. IN. OUT. VOLUME. Pedal . DIST. VIBE CHORUS DELAY. AMP. IN OUT IN OUT IN OUT IN OUT. POWER MADE IN. BUFFER INPUT SEND 1 RETURN 1 SEND 2 RETURN 2 SEND 3 RETURN 3 INSERT SEND 4 RETURN 4 OUTPUT 9 VAC MIDI OUT MIDI IN. In this example, we've placed a volume Pedal after the distortion and vibe sounds, but before the delay. Set up like this, you can volume swell into chords with delay without the initial pick attack getting repeated.